Purpose: Engineers graduating from premier institutions of India look for global opportunities that will provide a chance to work with the best and the most innovative minds in the world. Nevertheless, to compete in the global job market, they require added competence in English. However, it is seen that despite exemplary hard skills, lack of good…

This study examined within and cross-language relations, and specifically, the role of phonological awareness (PA) skills in reading among young Hindi-speaking children (L1) who were learning to read English (L2) in Delhi, India. Data was collected from 143 children in Grades 1 and 2 using measures validated for this population. The analyses…

This study was part of a larger longitudinal study in which we focused on measuring reading acquisition and observing the impact of SES, curriculum and gender on reading subtest scores. In Part 1 of our study (in review), we reported on findings for students in Grade 1. For Part 2 of our study, we report on our findings for students in Grades 3…

As writing pedagogy gains distinct footholds in university classrooms in India, it is worth retracing some of its steps to the shaping influence of composition pedagogies in the United States. In this article, the authors recount their experiences of using the concept of conversation to enable academic writing in their classrooms. Each narrative…

English is accepted as a universal language across the world. Its popularity is increasing drastically almost in all sectors. People speak this language, to unify themselves in this diverse world. Overall, the aim of teaching English, as a second language is to encourage the learners to sharpen the skills of communication, for both academic and…

This article discusses the impact of the worldwide trend to introduce English as a foreign language (EFL) into primary schools at ever younger ages. This trend has gained momentum in recent years, affecting millions of children in countries throughout Asia. A policy decision of this kind has far-reaching implications but it is often made without…

This study explores the possibility of adapting specific progress-monitoring tools developed in the US for use in English-medium private schools in Bangalore. In the US, many teachers adopt progress-monitoring tools like the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) and Curriculum Based Measurement (easyCBM) to keep track of their…

The article gives information on English language teaching schemes in Indian classrooms for foreign students. The teacher monitors as facilitator and instructor. The trainees were trained in the four macro skills, LSRW. I taught some topics in three skills, namely, writing, listening and reading (just three, not speaking skills) to Chinese…

"A picture is worth a thousand words." In a modern-day classroom, students are surrounded by visual imagery through textbooks, notice boards, television, videos, or computers. Many middle school classrooms are filled with colorful pictures and photographs. However, it is unclear how--or if --these images impact the middle school ESL…

This paper reports research that investigated parental support for children's reading of English in an inner-city school in the developing country context of an Indian city, Ahmedabad. Children had oral proficiency in the regional language but were beginning to acquire conventional forms of literacy in English. Sociocultural mediation theory…

The present study is about the early literacy skills among children in the lower kindergarten in India. The study seeks to identify the areas where inadequacy exists in the Indian scenario where the medium of instruction is not the first language/mother tongue of the child. The study found that children were proficient in the skills taught in…

This study investigated the relationships between phonological awareness and reading in Oriya and English. Oriya is the official language of Orissa, an eastern state of India. The writing system is an alphasyllabary. Ninety-nine fifth grade children (mean age 9 years 7 months) were assessed on measures of phonological awareness, word reading and…

Explores the reading traditions and practices that influence the interpretation of two text types, academic and general text, by postgraduate students from Thailand and India studying in the areas of business, humanities, engineering/science, and health sciences. Data were collected from case studies conducted at an Australian university.…

This volume is intended to introduce college teachers of English as a second language (ESL) to some of the basic concepts underlying the teaching of English in India. A theoretical framework is formulated within which problems such as the planning of syllabuses and designing of courses and tests may be understood. At the same time, practical…